Verona Murphy (Wexford, Independent) | Oireachtas source

We have not resourced our ICUs as we should. We have not expanded ICU capacity as required. Long before Covid we had staff shortages. In key areas of the HSE, beds are closing, corridors are full of patients on trolleys and waiting lists are expanding. The Government has put all its eggs in the vaccination basket and believes so much in the vaccination that it is trying to coerce people to take it. It makes sense, therefore, that the booster shots are offered to the 3,500 nursing staff. I do not suggest that nurses be compelled to take a booster vaccine, as is done in other countries. Instead, it should be offered to those who want to keep our health service show on the road. Offering that would be consistent with Government vaccination policy. It is a pity it took so long to be introduced. In light of the facts presented in this motion, I support the decision to offer the booster programme to nurses, but I equally want the Government to stop the divisive rhetoric against any nurse or, indeed, anyone who decides not to take it.

On a broader level, we must examine why we have issues with recruiting the required number of staff to operate our health services as effectively as possible. First, they must be paid at a level that will encourage our graduates to remain in the country. The working conditions must allow nurses to work effectively without being expected to operate consistently for extended hours in understaffed and overcrowded wards. We must also ensure that pay and conditions match what is on offer with competitors. Otherwise, this will continue to be a problem. With that in mind, the McHugh report needs careful attention. Are we giving our student nurses a good first impression of the Irish health service if we expect them to perform front-line nursing activities without pay? It is as if the current policy is designed to turn nurses off pursuing their careers in our health service.

This weekend, I met a lovely trainee nurse called Sarah, from New Ross, at her uncle's funeral. She raved about nursing. She just loves it and wants to specialise in respiratory nursing. Covid has not put her off this one bit. I was in awe of her enthusiasm. As she spoke, all I could think was that I hope the system does not suck the life out of her. It is clear that nursing is a vocation and not just a job. We should be glad of this because it equates to extra dedication that no amount of money can pay for. Just ask the patients who have been in receipt of such care and attention. This is not an attribute that the Government should take advantage of, but one it should nourish and pay for accordingly.

I have almost lost count of the number of times I have raised staffing issues in the child and adolescent mental health service, CAMHS, facility in Wexford. There have been some improvements, which is obviously welcome, but the fact still remains that the unit is understaffed. It is not fair to blame any individual Minister for this; it has been caused by a long-standing problem of mismanagement and cuts to staff pay and conditions across the board in the health service. It means that there are parents whose children are not receiving the services when they need to access them. I will continue to ask for this service to be fully staffed until it is. I have raised numerous times the issue of the continued absence of an MRI scanner in Wexford General Hospital, which the people of Wexford generously raised the funds to buy. One excuse given for why it has not been installed yet is that there are staffing issues that need to be addressed. I ask that the staffing issues be addressed to allow the €250,000 which the people of Wexford raised to be used.

I refer to the delivery of a 24-hour cardiac care service in the Minister of State's county at Waterford University Hospital. The funds to ensure the staff are recruited to run the 24-hour cardiac care service have not yet been provided. This service takes care of the 600,000 people in the community healthcare organisation, CHO, department. I do not wish to be dramatic, but each of the issues I have raised can make the difference between life and death.

This motion calls on the Government to ramp up the provision of mental health supports. I am in favour of improved mental health supports for nurses, in what is a stressful and pressurised job. However, while I stand here speaking, a search operation is continuing in the New Ross area for a young man missing since Wednesday, which is devastating for his family. Such situations happen weekly, if not daily, and I want that to end.

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